Crotty Cup 2019 - West Clare CC

mamax

Just a heads up to anyone interested that this race is back for 2019 and I've been asked to share it here, Thanks


Hosted by West Clare Cycling Club
The Crotty Cup returns and takes place on May 11th in Kilrush, Co. Clare

Saturday, May 11, 2019 from 12:00

Kilrush Community School
Kilrush, Co. Clare

https://www.facebook.com/WestClareCC/

We're back with a new challenging route for 2019 through the heart of West Clare.

The race will start and finish at Kilrush Community School which has a spacious and safe car park for your vehicles on the day.

The Crotty Cup is one of Irelands oldest races dating back to 1934 and we are proud to have it back on the racing calender.

A1,A2,A3 - 132km

A4 - 88km

(incorporating The Cotter Cup for A4 Race)

Click HERE for Crotty Cup 2019 route on Strava

For updates see https://www.facebook.com/WestClareCC

Link to register > https://eventmaster.ie/event/nM9iplH0v

Sign on from 10am
12pm start

Kilrush Community School
Kilrush, Co. Clare
V15KT04

harringtonp

Nice, that's considerably longer than the Kilmihil loop.

And I hope the handicaps are considerably larger too

harringtonp

Just a thought guys. You could make the gap between A3 and A1 anywhere between 3 and 8 minutes and they will get caught either way. The difference is that with 3 mins, they are not likely to last a lap where as with 8 mins the group could make it into the final lap.

Given the length of the race, advertising generous time gaps in advance would make it more attractive to A3s and bump numbers. I know the commissaire will have the final say but I'd imagine most listen to the organizers input before making a decision.

I heard from club mates that 8 minutes were given in the Castlebar GP in Mayo last year which was a similar sort of race. The A3s were all caught in the end but at least they had comparative peace for a large part of the race.

mamax

Yep thanks for that, the feedback has been good so far and we're taking every suggestion on board, we'd like to know what the riders want so the proposed times are

A3 - 12:00
A2 - 12:08
A1 - 12:10
A4 - 12:12

It's a good route and local support has been excellent, and if anyone is staying overnight we'll be extending an invitation to join us on our sunday spin from 9am the following day to take in the local scenery at a more leisurely pace

Thanks again

Taxuser1

Shame its the day before the Shay Elliot. You'll get riders but maybe not as many of the top Munster A1/2 riders

harringtonp

Its always has been (in its recent incarnation) on the day before the Shay

Taxuser1

harringtonp wrote: »

Its always has been (in its recent incarnation) on the day before the Shay

Which makes it a shame because 140km on tough roads the day before a classic isn't ideal.

ABEasy

mamax wrote: »

Yep thanks for that, the feedback has been good so far and we're taking every suggestion on board, we'd like to know what the riders want so the proposed times are

A3 - 12:00
A2 - 12:08
A1 - 12:10
A4 - 12:12

It's a good route and local support has been excellent, and if anyone is staying overnight we'll be extending an invitation to join us on our sunday spin from 9am the following day to take in the local scenery at a more leisurely pace

Thanks again

I'd suggest 12.05 for the A2 rather than 12.08. there is a massive disparity between the A1 & A2 riders, probably bigger than the difference between the A2 & A3.

harringtonp

I'm A3 but that suggestion makes sense. Otherwise A2s will be absorbed by A1s early on.

Gaps of 5 and 10 mins could make it interesting as there will be a real incentive for both the A2 and A3 groups to get organised and ride.

mamax

Update:

We have had a great response from local businesses with sponsorship and there has been some proper road resurfacing (black top) done on the route the last few weeks as well which will improve the racing conditions so everything is looking good.
We are doing everything possible to make The Crotty Cup a safe and enjoyable race for the riders, we will have medical teams following the race and the start/finish line is only 50mtrs from the local ambulance depot should the need arise.
We will also have 4 motorcycle marshalls to lead the races and plenty of static marshalls along the route
We hope to see you on Sat 11th May in West Clare

dahat

Anyone got a Strava route please? Is it a lumpy 132km?

Got the route, 296m per lap.

mamax

dahat wrote: »

Anyone got a Strava route please? Is it a lumpy 132km?

Got the route, 296m per lap.

There's a few lumpy bits but overall it's very good, we had a few join us on a couple of laps yesterday and the feedback was positive, there was quite a bit of activity on the route over the weekend

The weather for Saturday is looking good as well

mamax

Just a heads up for anyone racing The Crotty/Cotter cup this Saturday that if you want to save some time on the morning of the race register online before 9pm Friday
https://eventmaster.ie/event/nM9iplH0v

harringtonp

Great well organised race and perfect weather for it. Good quiet safe circuit. Enjoyed the distance, new territory for A3s

dahat

How long did the A3 stay away?

wirelessdude01

Any final results?

G1032

dahat wrote: »

How long did the A3 stay away?

Don't know exactly but they were caught somewhere on the final lap afaik. 100km ish I'd imagine. Open to correction.

They had 8 minutes on the A1/A2

dahat

G1032 wrote: »

Don't know exactly but they were caught somewhere on the final lap afaik. 100km ish I'd imagine. Open to correction.

They had 8 minutes on the A1/A2

A pity they couldn't hang in, another 2 mins might have helped.

I'm not overly keen on handicap races so passed this for that reason.

harringtonp

dahat wrote: »

How long did the A3 stay away?

Scratch group of 5 riders made the junction at 93km, rest came across around the 114km mark

mamax

harringtonp wrote: »

Great well organised race and perfect weather for it. Good quiet safe circuit. Enjoyed the distance, new territory for A3s

The whole event was a huge success, we got very positive feedback on the route which is probably the most important bit of any race.
Commisaires were very happy with the event management, the CI safety officer that attended gave a thumbs up to everything, lots of riders we spoke to enjoyed it so thanks to everyone that took a chance on a new committee running a race on a new circuit we hope to see you again next year.

Few pics here http://balooz.com/crotty-cup-2019/
And on Facebook Facebook.com/westclarecc

harringtonp

dahat wrote: »

A pity they couldn't hang in, another 2 mins might have helped.

I'm not overly keen on handicap races so passed this for that reason.

Actually 8 mins was plenty. A3's rode first lap at 40.4km/hr and we were told we still had 6 mins or more on the scratch. Second lap ridden at 38.4km/hr and the gap shot right down.

Not sure why the slow down was so much. Groups were small, perhaps 30 in each but I reckon half to 2/3 of the A3's were rolling through and this lasted until the catch. Guess guys were getting tired as noticeably more guys went down the back for a break on the 2nd lap and the lines were shorter.